Cushioning assembly



Nov. 26, 1968 w. D. WALLACE ET AL 3,412,869

CUSHIONING ASSEMBLY 5 sheets-sheet 1' Filed Nov. 2l, 1966 .QNITV NIT! mw mw UQQ llm l@ \l lllll lll Robe-Tlf jf. arZson/g les @Kenczczl Nov. 26, 1968 W D WALL-ACE ET AL 3,412,869

cusHIoNING ASSEMBLY Filed Nov. 21, 1966 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 NmN .ww ww ma @Q @www ww .1- {f} 0 NNlOGO QNN @NN NNW 0 O @Q mw/l NN @u m anda@ 5 Sheets-Sheet NOV. 26, 1968 W D, WALLACE ET AL CUSHIONING ASSEMBLY Filed NOV. 2l, 1966 fm1/enf@ 71s:-

ZUG/Zaag Roberl. Carlom les m, NN

v/fnvlia will. .llvflllllnr 3,412,869 CUSHIONING ASSEMBLY William D. Wallace and Robert L. Carlson, Chicago, Ill.,

and Giles A. Kendall, Burbank, Calif., assignors to W. H. Miner, Inc., Chicago, Ill., a corporation of Delaware Filed Nov. 21, 1966, Ser. No. 595,992 17 Claims. (Cl. 213-8) Our present invention relates generally to a cushioning assembly for use, for example, in cushioning shock forces imposed on the coupler member of a railway car, and the principal object thereof is the provision of a long travel cushioning assembly comprised of damped spring means that will absorb shock forces in both buff and draft.

The cushioning assembly, in general, comprises an elongated housing slidably mounted longitudinally in the center sill of a railway car. The housing has an open forward end section in which the car coupler member is received, and a rear casing section in which is provided a chamber for damped spring means. Novel force transmitting and reaction means are arranged among the coupler member, the housing and the sill whereby buff and draft forces imposed on the coupler member are transmitted to the damped spring means. The damped spring means, which is novel in and of itself, includes the above-described casing chamber, a piston rod extending into the rear end of the chamber, a piston on the piston rod within the chamber, a slidable piston unit at the forward end of the chamber, and a compressible solid lling the chamber. The piston unit and the piston rod are successively moved into the chamber in response to buff forces, while the piston unit is moved into the chamber in response to draft forces. In either circumstance, the compressible solid is reduced in volume for providing a damping and spring force which serves to absorb and dissipate buff and draft forces.

It is another object of our present invention to provide a cushioning assembly, as described, which is adapted to be incorporated in the center sill of an existing railway car with minimum modification of the latter.

It is another object of our present invention to provide a sill extension for a conventional center sill to adapt the latter for incorporation of our cushioning assembly.

It is another object of our present invention to provide a cushioning assembly which may be selectively foreshortened to facilitate installation and removal of the latter in and from the center sill of the railway car.

It is a further object of our present invention to provide novel means for biasing the coupling member toward a centered position longitudinally of the cushioning housing while allowing both angling and longitudinal movement thereof relative to the housing.

It is a further object of our present invention to provide novel force transmitting and reaction means between the coupler member and the piston unit of the damped spring means which will accommodate angling movement of the coupler member relative thereto.

It is a further object of our present invention to provide a cushioning assembly, as described, which includes a guide sleeve that slidably receives the rear housing section for protecting the piston rod and minimizing bending loads thereon caused by angular impact.

It is a still further object of our present invention to provide a cushioning assembly, as described, which includes auxiliary coil springs for assisting in positive return of the cushioning assembly to a neutral position upon dissipation or removal of buif forces.

Now in order to acquaint those skilled in the art with the manner of constructing and using cushioning assemblies in accordance with the principles of our present States Patet O are ICC

invention, we shall describe in connection with the accompanying drawings a preferred embodiment of our invention.

In the drawings:

FIGURE 1 is a side elevational view, with portions being broken away and shown in section, of our cushion assembly installed in the center sill of a railway car;

FIGURE 2 is a horizontal sectional view, taken substantially along the line 2 2 in FIGURE l, looking in the direction indicated by the arrows;

FIGURE 3 is a vertical sectional view, taken substantially along the line 3 3 in FIGURE 2 looking in the direction indicated by the arrows;

FIGURE 4 is a horizontal sectional view, corresponding generally to FIGURE 2, but showing the elements of the cushioning assembly in full draft position;

FIGURE 5 is a horizontal sectional view, corresponding generally to FIGURE 2, but showing the elements of the cushioning assembly in full buff position;

FIGURE 6 is a transverse sectional view, taken substantially along the line 6 6 in FIGURE l, looking in the direction indicated by the arrows;

FIGURE 7 is a transverse sectional view, taken substantially along the line 7 7 in FIGURE l, looking in the direction indicated by the arrows;

FIGURE 8 is a transverse sectional view taken substantially along the line 8 8 in FIGURE l, looking in the direction indicated by the arrows;

FIGURE 9 is a transverse sectional view, taken substantially along the line 9 9 in FIGURE 2, looking in the direction indicated by the arrows; and

FIGURE l0 is a transverse sectional view, taken substantially along the line 10 10 in FIGURE 2, looking in the direction indicated by the arrows.

Referring now to FIGURES 2 and 8, there is indicated generally by the reference numeral 20 a preferred embodiment of cushioning assembly of our present invention which is adapted to be mounted in the end portion of the center sill 22 of a railway car. The center sill 22, which presents an open forward end, extends longitudinally of the railway car and is of inverted generally U-shaped conguration with sidewalls 24 and lower lateral anges 26. When our cushioning assembly 20 is to be incorporated in an existing railway car, the conventional striker casting (not shown) at the end of the sill 22 is removed, longitudinally extending openings 28 are formed in the sidewalls 24, suitable reaction or frame means in the form of lugs 30 are secured within the sill 22 at a position spaced from the open forward end thereof, and a sill extension 32 is secured to the sill 22 at the open forward end thereof.

The sill extension 32, as shown in FIGURES l and 7, includes sidewall members 34 suitably secured, as by welding through weld apertures 36, to the outboard faces of the sill sidewalls 24, a carrier plate 38 secured, as by rivets, to the bottom of the lower anges 40 of the sidewall members 34 and the sill anges 26, and a cover plate 42 secured, as by rivets, to the top of the upper anges 44 of the sidewall members 34. Suitable shims 46 are inserted between the cover plate 42 and the anges 44 prior to the securing of these members together to provide necessary clearance for the moving parts of our cushioning assembly to be described hereinafter. The described sill extension 32 presents a generally rectangular or box-like section that extends beyond the open forward end of the sill 22. Additionally, the extension sidewall members 34 are formed with longitudinally extending openings 48 that are coextensive with the openings 28 in the sill sidewalls 24. The sill extension 32 is so constructed and arranged that the same parts may be used in connection with any weight center sill having slightly varying outside dimensions. The center sill 22 and the sill extension 32 together serve to define center sill means.

As shown in FIGURE 2, the cushioning assembly is comprised of an elongated housing 52 that is slidably supported in the sill 22 and sill extension 32. The housing 52 has an open forwa-rd end section 54, an intermediate body section 56 and a rear casing section 58. The forward end section 54 has arcuate sidewalls 60 that present inner faces 62 which diverge in a forward direction. Longitudinally extending slots 64 are formed in each sidewall 60. The butt end of a coupler member 66 (FIG- URES l-3 and 6), which is provided with a longitudinally extending transverse slot 68, extends into the forward end section 54. A transverse key member or force transmitting means 70 is disposed through the slots 64 in the housing section 54 and the slot 68 in the coupler member 66. Leaf springs 72 at their forward ends are secured, as by welding, to the inner faces 62 of the housing end section 54, and at their rear free ends springingly engage the sides of the butt end of the coupler member 66. The leaf springs 72 bias the coupler member 66 toward a centered position longitudinally of the housing S2 and the center sill 22 While allowing both angling and longitudinal movement thereof relative to the housing 52.

The intermediate body section S6 of the housing 52 (FIGURES 2 and 7) is formed with a longitudinally extending transverse opening '74, a central longitudinal forward opening 76 and a central longitudinal rearward opening 78. A transverse draft key 80 extends through and is slidable in the openings 48 in the sill extension sidewall members 34, in the openings 28 in the sill sidewalls 24 and in the opening 74 in the housing body section S6. A ram member 82 is slidably mounted in the opening 76 in the housing body section 46. The ram member 82 is formed with a forward spherical end 84 that is engageable with the rear flat face 86 of the coupler member 66, and with a rearwardly facing slot 88 (FIGURE 3) that receives the front edge of the draft key 80. The coupler member 66 is retained in operating position by means of the key member 70, the draft key 80 and the ram member 82. The spherical end 84 of the ram member 82 serves to accommodate angling movement of the coupler member 66 relative to the ram member 82 and the draft key 80. A piston retainer 90 is slidably mounted in the opening 78 in the housing body section 56. The forward end of the piston retainer 90 is grooved as at 92 (FIG- UR'E 3) to receive the rear edge of the draft key 80, and the rearward end of the piston retainer 90 is formed with an enlarged annular flange 93 that limits forward movement of the retainer and with an axial bore 94 for a purpose to be described hereinafter. The draft key 80, ram member 82 and piston retainer 90 constitute force transmitting and reaction means.

The rear casing section 58 of the housing S2 forms part of damped spring means now to be described. Mounted in the rearward end of section 58 is a piston rod bearing or gland 96 formed with annular iiange portion 98 of enlarged inner diameter, The bearing 96 is restrained against outward movement by split retainer ring means 100 (FIGURE 10). Slidably mounted in the casing section 58 is a sleeve member 102 formed with a rearwardly extending nose portion 104 of reduced outer diameter that is slidably guided in the flange portion 98 of the piston rod bearing 96. Interposed between the piston rod bearing 96 and the nose portion 104 of the sleeve member 102 within the confines of the -iiange portion 98 are an annular seal 106 formed of a soft pliable material such as Tefion impregnated asbestos, and an annular antiextrusion ring 108. The bearing liange 98 and the sleeve member 102 about the nose portion 104 define with the casing section 58 an annular cavity 109 which communicates with a passageway 110 (FIGURE 3) formed through the wall of the casing section 58 for a purpose to be described hereinafter.

Extending through and slidably guided in the piston rod bearing 96 and the sleeve member 102 is an actuating element or piston rod 111 having formed on the forward end thereof a piston 112. The outer periphery of the piston 112 is spaced from the interior surface of the casing section 58 whereby to provide axial orifice means in the form of an annular orifice. Slidably mounted in the forward end of the casing 58 is an actuating element or piston unit 114 having a piston head 11S and a forwardly extending stem portion 116 that is received in the bore 94 of the piston retainer 90. Interposed between the piston head 115 and the piston retainer 90 are an annular seal 118 similar to seal 106 and annular anti-extrusion rings 120. The piston head 11S and the sleeve member 102 serve to define with the casing section 58 a chamber 122 that is filled with a compressible solid or elastomer 124 such as silicone rubber. The annular cavity 109 is also filled wtih a compressible solid 126 as will be discussed further hereinafter. The damped spring means acting through the piston retainer 90 maintains the draft key and intervening ram member 82 in a firm relationship with the coupler member 66 in neutral and buff positions of the cushioning assembly.

The cushioning assembly 20 further includes a transverse support plate 128 which is suitably mounted on the rear end of the piston rod 111 and which is slidable in the center sill 22 and engage-able with the frame means 30. A longitudinal guide sleeve 130 is secured at its rear end to the support plate 128 and slidably receives the rear casing section 58 for protecting the piston rod 111 and minimizing bending loads thereon caused by angular impact. The guide sleeve 130 is provided with an aperture 131 (FIGURE 3) that aligns with the passageway 110 when the cushioning assembly is in neutral position. Additionally, auxiliary coil springs 132 (FIGURES l, 9 and l0) are arranged between the support plate 128 and the intermediate housing section 56 for assisting in positive return of the housing 52 to a neutral position upon dissipation or removal of buff forces as will be more specilically noted hereinafter. The cushioning assembly 20 is supported in position by the carrier plate 38 and by a rear carrier strap 134 (FIGURE l) suitably secured, as by rivets, to the sill fianges 26.

In assembly of the cushioning assembly 20, a preformed ring of compressible solid 126 is disposed in the annular cavity 109 and a plug (not shown) is inserted in the outer end of the passageway 110. This compressible solid ring is wider than the normal axial extent of the cavity 109 and hence serves to foreshorten the overall length of the housing 52 and the piston rod 111 a minimum of 1A: inch thus facilitating installation thereof in the center sill. The pre-assembled unit is then raised into the sill and the carrier plate 38 and carrier strap 134 are secured to the bottom of the sill means. Next, the draft key 80, the ram member 82, the coupler member 66 and the key member 70 are assembled in position. Finally, the'plug is removed from the passageway 110 allowing the compressible solid 126 to extrude from the cavity 109 through the passageway 110 and the sleeve aperture 131. As a result, the housing 52 and the piston rod 111 are permitted to expand to normal operating length against the draft key 8) and the frame means 30. While the cushioning assembly 20 is installed in the center sill, the passageway 110 is permitted to remain open thereby allowing the sleeve member 102 to move freely under pressure to compensate for wear of the seal 106. When desired, additional compressible solid may be introduced under pressure through the passageway 110 and into the cavity 109 to again foreshorten the overall length of the housing and the piston rod to facilitate removal thereof from the center sill.

In the operation of the cushioning assembly 20, buff forces imposed on the coupler member 66 cause the latter to move the ram member 82, the draft key 80, the piston retainer and the piston unit 114 rearwardly or to the right from the neutral position shown in FIGURE 2 toward the position shown in FIGURE 5. The piston unit 114 moves into the chamber 122 and thus compresses and increases the pressure of the compressible solid 124 until the rear face 86 of the butt end of the coupler member 66 engages or bottoms out on the adjacent wall of the intermediate housing section 56. Further buff travel of the coupler member 66 causes the housing 52 to move rearwardly. Because the piston 112 and piston rod 111 are maintained stationary relative to the sill 22 due to engagement of the support plate 128 with the frame means 30, rearward movement of the housing 52 causes the piston 112 and piston rod 111 to move into the chamber 122. As the piston rod 111 enters the chamber 122, the volume of the chamber is reduced to the extent of displacement by the piston rod, thus increasing the pressure of the compressible solid 124 in the chamber. Concurrently, the compressible solid 124 is metered through the annular orifice surrounding the piston 112 thereby producing a throttling effect. The described volume-pressure change of the compressible solid, and the attendant throttling effect, impose a damping and spring force on the piston unit and on the piston and piston rod, and thereby serve to dissipate the energy of buff forces received by the damped spring7 means from the coupler member 66. At the point of maximum buff travel of the cushioning assembly 20, the rear end of the casing section 58 engages or bottoms out on the support plate 128, as shown in FIGURE 5, and any additional buff forces are transferred to the frame means 30.

When the buff forces are fully dissipated or removed from the coupler member 66, the pressure of the compressible solid 124 acting on the piston head 11S and on the unbalanced area of the piston rod 111, causes the housing 52 and the piston unit 114 to return to the neutral position shown in FIGURE 2. During the return stroke of the housing 52, the compressible solid 124 flows back through the annular orifice surrounding the piston 112 to fill the space being vacated by the latter. Also, the coil springs 132 assist in the positive return of the housing to a neutral position.

When draft forces are imposed on the coupler member 66, the key member 70 and the housing S2 are moved forwardly or to the left from the position shown in FIGURE 2 toward the position shown in FIGURE 4. At this time, the draft key 80 bears against the forward ends of the sill openings 48 thus maintaining the piston retainer 90 and the piston unit 114 stationary. As a result, the piston unit 114 is moved into the chamber 122 thus compressing the compressible solid 124 by an amount equal to the full piston displacement. Draft forces are thereby absorbed and dissipated in a manner corresponding to the action of rubber spring. As the cushioning assembly 20 reaches full draft travel as shown in FIGURE 4, the rear edge of the opening 74 in the housing 52 engages or bottoms out against the draft key 80. When the draft forces are fully dissipated or removed from the coupler member 66, the pressure of the compressible solid 124 acting on the full area of the piston head 114 causes the housing 52 to return to the neutral position shown in FIGURE 2.

While the compressible solid 124 referred to herein is the preferred compressible medium to be used in the damped spring means of the present invention, it is noted that other compressible mediums such as some of the compressible liquids currently available may be utilized in other embodiments within the scope of the present invention.

While we have shown and described what we believe to be a preferred embodiment of our present invention, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that various rearrangements and modifications may be made therein without departing from the spirit and scope of our invention.

We claim:

1. Damped spring means comprising an elongated casing section with a chamber therein, a piston rod extending into said chamber at one end thereof, means disposed concentrically about said piston rod and mounted in said one end of said chamber for sealing same, a piston on said piston rod within said chamber and presenting axial orifice means, a piston unit slidable in said casing section at the other end of said chamber, and a compressible solid filling said chamber or providing a damping and spring force on said piston as said piston rod moves into said chamber and reduces the volume of said solid and on said piston unit as the latter moves into said chamber and reduces the volume of said solid.

2. The damped spring means of claim 1 wherein said means comprises a piston rod bearing mounted in said casing section for slidably guiding said piston rod, and a sleeve member slidably mounted in said casing section about said piston rod, said piston rod bearing and said sleeve member defining an annular cavity therebetween, wherein a compressible solid is disposed in said cavity to foreshorten said damped spring means When not under load, and wherein means is provided for allowing extrusion of said last-named compressible solid from said cavity to permit said damped spring means to expand to normal operating length.

3. The damped spring means of claim 1 wherein a piston rod bearing formed with an annular flange portion of enlarged inner diameter is mounted in said casing section for slidably guiding said piston rod, means are provided for restraining said piston rod bearing against movement outwardly of said casing section, a sleeve member is slidably mounted in said casing section about said piston rod and has an annular nose portion of reduced diameter slidably guided in said flange portion of said piston rod bearing, a pliable seal and an anti-extrusion ring are interposed between said piston rod bearing and said nose portion within the confines of said flange portion, said flange portion and said sleeve member about Said nose portion define with said Casing section an annular cavity, a compressible solid is disposed in said cavity to foreshorten said damped spring means when not under load, and means is provided for allowing extrusion of said last-named compressible solid from said cavity to permit said damped spring means to expand to normal operating length.

4. Damped spring means comprising an elongated casing section with a chamber therein, a piston rod extending into said chamber at one end thereof, a piston on said piston rod within said chamber and presenting axial orifice means, a compressible solid filling said chamber for providing a damping and spring force on said piston as said piston rod moves into said chamber and reduces the volume of said solid, a piston rod bearing mounted in said casing section for slidably guiding said piston rod, a sleeve member slidably mounted in said casing section about said piston rod, said piston rod bearing and said sleeve member defining an annular cavity therebetween, a compressible solid disposed in said cavity to foreshorten said damped spring means when not under load, and means for allowing extrusion of said last-named compressible solid from said cavity to permit said damped spring means to expand to normal operating length.

S. The damped spring means of claim 4 wherein said piston rod bearing is formed with an annular flange portion of enlarged inner diameter, means are provided for restraining said piston rod bearing against movement outwardly of said casing section, said sleeve member has an annular nose portion of reduced diameter slidably guided in said flange portion of said piston rod bearing, a pliable seal and an anti-extrusion ring are interposed between said piston rod bearing and said nose portion within the confines of said flange portion, and said annular cavity is defined by said flange portion and said sleeve member about said nose portion and said casing section.

6. For use in a railway .car having longitudinally extending center sill means with an open forward end, the combination of an elongated housing arranged longitudinally of the center sill means, said housing having a chamber therein and front and rear actuating elements at the opposed ends of said chamber and a compressible solid iilling said chamber for providing a damping and spring force on said actuating elements as they move into said chamber and reduce the volume of said solid, a coupler member extending into Said housing at the forward end thereof, force transmitting means extending through said coupler member and said housing, said coupler member in response to buff forces applied thereto serving to move said housing rearwardly relative to said rear actuating element whereby said rear actuating element is moved into said chamber during the course of which buff forces are absorbed and dissipated, and said coupler member in response to draft forces applied thereto serving to move said force transmitting means and said housing forwardly relative to said front` actuating element whereby said front actuating element is moved into said chamber during the course of which draft forces are absorbed and dissipated.

7. The combination of claim 6 including reaction means secured within the center sill means at a position spaced from the open forward end thereof, and wherein said coupler member in response to buff forces applied thereto serves to move said housing rearwardly while said rear actuating element is maintained stationary due to engagement with said reaction means whereby said rear actuating element is moved into said chamber during the course of which buff forces are absorbed and dissipated.

S. The combination of claim 6 including force transmitting and reaction means extending through said housing and the center sill means and being engageable with said front actuating element, and wherein said coupler member in response to draft forces applied thereto serves to move said force transmitting means and said housing forwardly while said force transmitting and reaction means and said front actuating element are maintained stationary whereby said front actuating element is moved into said chamber during the course of which draft forces are absorbed and dissipated.

9. In a railway car, longitudinally extending center sill means with sidewalls and with an open forward end, frame means secured within said center sill means at a position spaced from the open forward end thereof, said center sill means having a longitudinally extending opening formed in each sidewall thereof intermediate of said frame means and the open forward end of said sill means, an elongated housing arranged longitudinally of said center sill means, said housing having an open forward end section with sidewalls and an intermediate body section with a longitudinally extending transverse opening formed therein and a rear casing section with a chamber therein, a piston rod extending into the rear end of said chamber, a piston on said piston rod within said chamber and presenting axial orifice means, a piston unit slidable in said casing section at the forward endl of said chamber, a compressible solid filling said chamber for providing a damping and spring force on said piston as said piston rod moves into said chamber and reduces the volume of said solid and on said piston unit as the latter moves into said chamber and reduces the volume of said solid, a transverse support plate mounted on the end of said piston rod outwardly of said chamber and being slidable in said center sill means and engageable with said frame means, a transverse draft key extending through said openings in said housing and in said center sill means, a piston retainer intermediate said draft key and said piston unit, a coupler member having a butt end extending into the open forward end section of said housing and having a longitudinally extending transverse slot formed therein, said open forward end section of said housing having a longitudinally extending slot formed in each sidewall thereof, a transverse key member extending through said slots in said coupler member and in said housing, said coupler member in response to buff forces applied thereto serving to move said housing rearwardly while said piston and piston rod are maintained stationary relative to said center sill means due to engagement of said support plate with said frame means whereby said piston and said piston rod are moved into said chamber during the course of which buff forces are absorbed and dissipated, and said coupler member is response to draft forces applied thereto serving to move said key member and said housing forwardly while said draft key and said piston retainer are maintained stationary relative to said center sill means whereby said piston unit is moved into said chamber during the course of which draft forces are absorbed and dissipated.

10. The combination of claim 9 wherein said side walls of said forward end section of said lhousing present inner faces which diverge in a forward direction, and including leaf springs at their forward ends secured to said inner faces and at their rear free ends springingly engaging the sides of said coupler member for biasing the latter toward a center position longitudinally of said housing while allowing both angling and longitudinal movement of said coupler member relative to said housing.

11. The combination of claim 9 including a ram member intermediate said butt end o-f said coupler member and said draft key, and wherein said coupler member in response to buff forces applied thereto serves initially to move said ram member and said draft key rearwardly for moving said piston retainer rearwardly and thereafter to move said housing rearwardly while said piston and piston rod are maintained stationary relative to said center sill means due to engagement of said support plate with said frame means whereby rst said piston unit and then said piston and said piston rod are moved into said chamber during the course of which buff forces are absorbed and dissipated.

12. The combination of claim 11 wherein said rear face of said butt end of said coupler member is flat, and wherein the forward end of said ram member engageable therewith is spherical whereby to accommodate angling movement of said coupler member relative to said ram member and said draft key.

13. The combination of claim 9 including coil springs extending between said support plate 'and said housing for assisting in positive return of said housing to a neutral position upon dissipation or removal of buff forces.

14. The combination of claim 9 including a longitudinal guide sleeve secured at its rear end to said support plate and slidably receiving said rear casing section of said housing for protecting said piston rod and minimizing bending loads thereon caused by angular impact.

15. The combination of claim 9 wherein said center sill means is comprised of an inverted generally U-shaped center sill, and a sill extension secured to and extending forwardly from the forward end of said center sill to adapt said center sill for incorporation of said housing, said sill extension having a bottom wall -for supporting said housing.

16. The combination of claim 9 wherein a piston rod bearing is mounted in said rear casing section for slidably guiding said piston rod, a sleeve member is slidably mounted in said rear casing section about said piston rod, said piston rod bearing and said sleeve member dene an annular cavity therebetween, a compressible solid is disposed in said cavity to foreshorten the over-all length of said housing and said piston rod to facilitate installation thereof in said center sill means, and means is provided for allowing extrusion of said last-named compressible solid from said cavity to permit said housing and said piston rod to expand to normal operating length.

17. For use in a railway car having longitudinally ex' tending center sill means with an open forward end, the combination of an elongated housing arranged longitudinally of the center sill means, said housing having a chamber therein and front and rear actuating elements at the opposed ends of said chamber and a compressible medium lling said chamber for providing a damping and spring force 0n said actuating elements as they move into said chamber and reduce the volume of said medium, a coupler member extending into said housing at the Iforward end thereof, force transmitting means extending through said coupler member and said housing, said coupler member in response to bul forces applied thereto serving to move said housing rearwardly relative to said rear actuating element whereby said rear actuating element is moved into said chamber during the course of which buff forces are absorbed and dissipated, and said coupler member in response to draft forces applied thereto serving to move said force transmitting means and said housing forwardly relative to said front actuating element whereby said front actuating element is moved into said chamber during the course of which draft forces are absorbed and dissipated.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 3,053,526 9/1962 Kendall 267--1 3,178,036 4/1965 Cardwell 213-40 X 3,178,037 4/1965 Kendall 213-40 DRAYTON E. HOFFMAN, Primary Examiner. 

1. DAMPED SPRING MEANS COMPRISING AN ELONGATED CASING SECTION WITH A CHAMBER THEREIN, A PISTON ROD EXTENDING INTO SAID CHAMBER AT ONE END THEREOF, MEANS DISPOSED ONE END OF SAID CHAMBER FOR SEALING SAME, A PISTON ON SAID PISTON ROD WITHIN SAID CHAMBER AND PRESENTING AXIAL ORIFICE MEANS, A PISTON UNIT SLIDABLE IN SAID CASING SECTION AT THE OTHER END OF SAID CHAMBER, AND A COMPRESSIBLE SOLID FILLING SAID CHAMBER OR PROVIDING A DAMPING AND SPRING FORCE ON SAID PISTON AS SAID PISTON ROD MOVES INTO SAID CHAMBER AND REDUCES THE VOLUME OF SAID SOLID AND ON SAID PISTON UNIT AS THE LATTER MOVES INTO SAID CHAMBER AND REDUCES THE VOLUME OF SAID SOLID. 